[Illustration:  THE BARONS COMPELLED HENRY III.  TO PROMISE COMPLIANCE WITH THE MAGNA CHARTA.]

Possessing peculiar gifts as a versatile liar and boneless coward, and being entirely free from the milk of human kindness or bowels of compassion, his remains were eagerly sought after and yearned for by scientists long before he decided to abandon them.

Again, in 1258, he was required to submit to the requests of the barons; but they required too much this time, and a civil war followed.

Simon de Montfort, Earl of Leicester, at the head of the rebellious barons, won a victory over the king in 1264, and took the monarch and his son Edward prisoners.

Leicester now ruled the kingdom, and not only called an extra session of Parliament, but in 1265 admitted representatives of the towns and boroughs, thereby instituting the House of Commons, where self-made men might sit on the small of the back with their hats on and cry “Hear!  Hear!”

The House of Commons is regarded as the bulwark of civil and political liberty, and when under good police regulations is still a great boon.

Prince Edward escaped from jail and organized an army, which in 1265 defeated the rebels, and Leicester and his son were slain.  The wicked soldiery wreaked their vengeance upon the body of the fallen man, for they took great pride in their prowess as wreakers; but in the hearts of the people Leicester was regarded as a martyr to their cause.

Henry III. was now securely seated once more upon his rather restless throne, and as Edward had been a good boy for some time, his father gave him permission to visit the Holy Land, in 1270, with Louis of France, who also wished to go to Jerusalem and take advantage of the low Jewish clothing market.  In 1272 Henry died, during the absence of his son, after fifty-six years of vacillation and timidity.  He was the kind of king who would sit up half of the night trying to decide which boot to pull off first, and then, with a deep-drawn sigh, go to bed with them on.

Edward, surnamed “Longshanks,” having collected many antiques, and cut up a few also, returned and took charge of the throne.  He found England prosperous and the Normans and Saxons now thoroughly united and homogeneous.  Edward did not hurry home as some would have done, but sent word to have his father’s funeral made as cheery as possible, and remained over a year in Italy and France.  He was crowned in 1274.  In a short time, however, he had trouble with the Welsh, and in 1282, in battle, the Welsh prince became somehow entangled with his own name so that he tripped and fell, and before he could recover his feet was slain.

[Illustration:  LONGSHANKS RECEIVES TIDINGS OF HIS FATHER’S DEATH.]

Wales having been annexed to the crown, Edward’s son was vested with its government, and the heir-apparent has ever since been called the Prince of Wales.  It is a good position, but becomes irksome after fifty or sixty years, it is said.